Israel has accepted US ceasefire proposal: Blinken

KABUL (Pajhwok): US Secretary of State Antony Blinken says Israel has accepted a “bridging proposal” of ceasefire deal in Gaza and wants Hamas to do the same.

On Monday, Blinken arrived in Israel to push for achieving a ceasefire in Gaza and end the 10-month-old conflict.

Blinken spoke to journalists after a day of meetings with Israeli officials, including a 2-1/2-hour meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Reuters reported.

But Osama Hamdan, a senior Hamas official, told Reuters: "When Blinken says that the Israelis agreed and then the Israelis say that there is an updated proposal, this means that the Americans are subject to Israeli pressure and not the other way around. We believe that it is a manoeuvre that gives the Israelis more time.”

The top US diplomat had earlier said that this push was probably the best opportunity for a deal.

US officials are optimistic of bringing the deal over the finish line but also caution that there was still work to be done.

“What we’ve done … have bridged the gaps in a way that we think basically is a deal that is now ready to close and implement and move forward,” a senior Biden administration official told reporters on Friday.

sa/mud